Newslinks for Wednesday 23rd October 2019

Brexit delay 1) Frustrated Johnson faces extension

“Members rejected his timetable for departing the EU by 322 to 308 in a defeat that threatens to doom Mr Johnson’s “do or die” pledge to leave by October 31. The prime minister was compelled by the Benn act to ask for an extension on Saturday after MPs withheld approval for his deal until all the necessary legislation had been passed. He was preparing to appeal last night to President Macron and other EU leaders to reject the extension request. Mr Macron said at the weekend that another delay “would be in no one’s interest”, in an intervention sought by Downing Street. However, Donald Tusk, the EU Council president, said that he would recommend that European leaders accept parliament’s request for a three-month extension. Mr Tusk said he had begun efforts to settle the terms of the delay unanimously by means of a written procedure. Any disagreement would require a special Brexit council meeting of all 27 leaders, probably on Sunday or Monday. Mr Johnson said that he would seek to hold a general election rather than accept a delay lasting “months”. – The Times

>Yesterday:

Brexit delay 2) And he puts Britain on election footing as Parliament ‘blew its last chance’

“The Prime Minister signalled on Tuesday night that he will scrap plans to get his Brexit deal through Parliament and instead go to the country as early as Nov 28. Downing Street said Parliament “blew its last chance” to get Britain out of the EU with a deal by Halloween when MPs rejected the Government’s tight timetable to get the legislation done in time. The defeat – and consequent delay – came despite the Commons voting in principle to back Mr Johnson’s deal by a majority of 30 – the first time any Brexit deal has been backed by MPs. Donald Tusk, the President of the European Council, said he would be recommending to EU leaders that they grant an extension to Jan 31 – something the Prime Minister said he could not accept. Instead, Number 10 said the time had come for voters to end the Brexit impasse by deciding whether they wanted “to get Brexit done with Boris or spend 2020 having two referendums on Brexit and Scotland with Jeremy Corbyn”. – Daily Telegraph

“European leaders could endorse a new Brexit extension by the end of this week after MPs rejected Boris Johnson’s “do or die” October 31 deadline. Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, confirmed last night he was in favour of offering the UK the three-month extension that has been requested by parliament. However, the extension could end early if a deal was ratified before then. He is due to consult member states over the coming days on his recommendation. If they back his plan, the extension could be agreed within the next few days in writing. However, the decision requires unanimity and would need a special European Council meeting if there was a disagreement. Mr Johnson said last night he would speak to European leaders “about their intentions” and that the EU “must now make up their minds over how to answer parliament’s request for a delay”. – The Times

Brexit delay 4) Shadow cabinet split over second referendum

“Labour’s top team split over the party’s Brexit strategy in a private meeting yesterday, hours before they inflicted another defeat on Boris Johnson. Ian Lavery, the party chairman, criticised Sir Keir Starmer’s support for a second referendum in a meeting of the shadow cabinet. He attacked the shadow Brexit secretary for “ramming down my throat” his support for a second referendum and remaining in the EU, two sources present said. Mr Lavery, who voted Remain, has been one of the senior figures most opposed to another public Brexit vote. A staunch supporter of Jeremy Corbyn, he wrote in May that those calling for a second referendum were “left-wing intellectuals” who seem to be “sneering at ordinary people and piling on those trying to convey the feelings of hundreds of thousands of Labour voters”. Labour has since announced that if Mr Corbyn becomes prime minister a softer Brexit would be negotiated and put to a referendum, with remaining in the EU an option on the ballot. Several senior shadow cabinet ministers, including Sir Keir, have said that whatever deal the party negotiates they would campaign for Remain.” – The Times

Brexit delay 5) Javid accused of leaving MPs in ‘void’

“As MPs prepared to vote on Tuesday evening on all-important legislation implementing Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal, the government published its assessment of the bill’s impact. Its best estimate of the total cost: £167.1m. To those in parliament who have been clamouring for the government to update its assessment of Brexit’s overall economic impact, the scant details reinforced long-held concerns. The majority of the £167m figure was attributed to a new monitoring unit to oversee EU citizens’ rights. The far greater impact of the UK’s decision to leave the EU or the terms of Mr Johnson’s deal were out of scope, the document stated. Chancellor Sajid Javid confirmed on Monday, in a letter to the parliamentary Treasury select committee, that he would not give MPs any new information on how the Brexit terms agreed by the UK prime minister with EU leaders in Brussels last week would affect the economy before they voted. Approving the withdrawal agreement “is self-evidently in our economic interest”, he argued, because it would end damaging uncertainty and “allow businesses to get on with taking decisions”. – FT

Brexit delay 6) Baker attacks BBC for ‘false premise’ questions

“Steve Baker has launched an attack on the BBC’s coverage of Brexit and particularly questions based on “false premises”. The Chairman of the European Research Group (ERG) accused the cooperation of asking “strident questions with false promises”. The leading Eurosceptic directed the BBC towards the Government’s published EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill (WAB) and the Government’s Impact Assessment – which outlines every detail of Britain’s exit from the EU. Mr Baker attached a link to the document and wrote on Twitter: “@BBCr4today: the impact assessment for the Withdrawal Agreement Bill is here: “Perhaps @MishalHusain meant another document. “@BBCPolitics is too often asking strident questions with false premises, eg in my last @BBCNewsnight interview. It’s not on.” The BBC state in its editorial guidelines it is “committed to achieving due impartiality in all its output”. – Daily Express

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